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Update: Man in hospital after assault near south side of Roxhill Park

10:32 PM: Thanks for the tips/questions regarding a sizable police/fire presence on the south side of Roxhill Park, near the Westwood Heights building on Roxbury. Police on the scene told us they are still trying to sort out who did what to who; according to radio communications monitored before we got there, a man in his mid-20s was found unconscious and was believed to have been repeatedly kicked in the head. Medics planned to take him to Harborview Medical Center. We’ll be following up to find out more about the circumstances and whether anyone was arrested.

UPDATE, 11:11 AM TUESDAY: Just received the report on this, after requesting it from SPD. It says police were called by someone who reported they had heard “there was possibly an assault, and the victim was possibly dead.” On arrival, officers found the victim on his back in the parking lot west of Westwood Heights, bleeding, going in and out of consciousness. Witnesses told conflicting stories of what had happened – one said they saw a group of teens kicking the victim, another said they heard “sounds of fighting” and saw three adults. Police weren’t able to find any potential suspects in the area. The victim is described in the report as having been in critical condition when taken to the hospital.

36 Replies to "Update: Man in hospital after assault near south side of Roxhill Park"

Ditto on the WTH is going on. I love the neighborhood but why do these bad apples have to ruin it for everybody else? It is time for the police to clean house. And for judges to actually imprison people for lengths greater than 48 hours.
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Close the park at dusk and release the police dogs for training exercises 2 nights a week (criminals can guess which two days).

Remember the last assault (or maybe it wasn’t). 2 supposed gang members were jumped by a group wearing all red. The “victim” asked the cop if he could throw up gang signs for his picture being taken.

I have seen groups wearing all red, smoking weed and drinking, being obnoxious in the park. I’ve come across as group of youths wearing all red on the path trying to stare me down, while on my way to a friend’s house in the apartment complex on the south-east side of the park.

A woman not too long ago saw a group of youths on the benches at the school directly south of the park,wearing all red, drinking and saw what appeared to be a gun fall from his front pants and called the cops.

My friend says that a group of youths wearing all red, ranging from about 8 to 10 people sit outside all the time being obnoxious, swearing, with some of them yelling if someone messes with them, they will get “bleeped” up as they reach under their shirts as if they have a gun.

I was walking from the same friend’s apartment last week and a small group of 20 somethings, drinking, NOT wearing red, started harassing me. They were trying to make me answer questions so I could “pass”. Luckily nothing happened and I tried to de-escalate the situation as best as a I could, but I’m also not a small person either. 6’0-200+ pounds. I just wonder if a smaller person might not have been more than harassed?

These thugs, and/or wannabe thugs are going to pick the wrong person one day. What this group of hoodlums didn’t realize was that I have a license to carry and I was.

There definitely needs to be more police presence in the park and the apartment complex just south-east of it. The only issue, is that the Seattle City Line runs 1/2 through the block that goes between Westwood Village and Safeway, so I don’t know if Seattle Police or King County has priority over who patrols in the apartment complex area

It’s getting bad because it is now considered racist to stop a group of young men, of any color or ethnicity. Even if said group of young men are walking down the street, all wearing red or blue, openly drinking or throwing garbage into the road.

Can’t leave everything to the police, all they can do is come to take a report after the fact. What we need community patrols with pro-active, situationally aware citizens determined to take back their community. not just talk in the comment section of West Seattle Blog

Eric — If the thugs are drinking in the park SPD should be on it based on the following rcw:

RCW 66.44.100

Opening or consuming liquor in public place — Penalty.

Except as permitted by this title, no person shall open the package containing liquor or consume liquor in a public place. Every person who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a class 3 civil infraction under chapter 7.80 RCW.

The city and SPD should be able to resolve these kinds of safety issues for the general public who want a safe park. Laws that are too liberal exacerbate criminal activity. Seattle is seeing the result of these laws.

“Laws that are too liberal exacerbate criminal activity. Seattle is seeing the result of these laws.”
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Non-enforcement of standing law or insufficient police funding to properly enforce law is not indicative of laws being liberal. There’s hardly a community I can probably think of in the US where you could probably find public consumption laws much more stringent, I wager. These themselves aren’t felony offenses, or anything severe. It’s their cumulative effect which becomes a problem. It always comes down to the will to enforce and budget to enforce, generally speaking.

i’m in for opera in the park
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it would beat the person who lets her two large black dogs lose in the morning to flush out the indigents in the park..
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all that has done is make it more difficult for people with leashed dogs to walk the park

I haven’t actually walked in that area but I do live nearby. If part of the problem is vegetation why don’t we have a neighborhood volunteer group to do a ‘removal and clean-up’. I’m sure we can do a decent job allowing for increased visibility. I would participate.

We all seen this coming in the late 80’s when
California street gangs begin their movement to the northwestern states capitalizing from the (at the time) epidemic of crack cocaine a new form of free base where dealers were tripling in profit enable young adults to drape themselves in gold and drive flashy whips attracting attention from very young and impressionable children. At the same time our State Lawmakers removed the rights parents had to spank our children when they stepped out of line keeping a disciplined firm punishment routine for adolescent misbehaving.The days of gettin a good old ass whooping were now “if you whoop my butt I will call CPS and have you put in jail for child abuse”. I was probally 6/7 at the time and remember hearing my elders say over and over again just how savage the following generations would turn out.Shortly after our govt. allowed teen health clinics to be placed in every high school then middle schools removing parental consent to distribution of condoms, birth control,STD screening and abortions free of charge to the patient(minor).Then decided we will seek prosecution on the parent/legal guardians of kids that have attendance problems.Created a whole bunch of budgets for programs geared towards troubled youth and taking property taxes once used for schools and education programs and instead funded our justice system juveniles and jails. We all have learned that wars generate revenue and with the unsuccessful attempt to invade Russia and the short lived desert storm they put in motion the beginning onset of civil war between mature Americans and their own youth.Once a active gang member and drug dealer robbing People for the props and hardcore reputation to a single mother of three struggling not to make ends meet cause there is no income and living off my father.Because Even though my dad was as strict as he was legally allowed to be and prosecuted for the lack of my attendance I was able to do as I wish dropping out of school.I thought I knew it all making decisions based on rebellion not knowing that without my high school diploma I would be able to live a comfortable independent life on my own means.Without breaking the law. I am blessed to have a devoted hard working law abiding Liberal man as a father.Who could of easily fell into the web of conviction laid in front of him by our politically greedy government state lawmakers and the biggest villans of them all Presidents, Vice Presidents, and federal officials that I did.Cause without him I would have no other recourse to provide for my children.We all should take responsibility for our own actions but sometimes our actions are based on the limitations of our society.We as a community need to come together and deflect from all that you are encouraged to do as American Citizens thru our media to vote and approve misprioritzed taxes for budgets that will never produce.Listening to how prosecution and institutions will rectify these sort of issues when in all reality throwing any creature man or animal to confinement and harsh punishment the end results will be a cycle of institutionalized reoffender.

Give Parents their rights back.. Remove the free social networks these kids flourish on reinstating fee based membership,limit the media far more then just a R rating and cut the government out of domestic affairs. Put the taxes back into our schools and community centers not services and stop funding corrections and judicial programs.Out of sight Out of Mind.These kids need structure and positive encouragement to stay active in productive activities paving a path to a healthy normal life to be cycled down to the next generation so so forth.

Everyone of us who lives around there should make it a point to spend more time in Roxhill Park in order to make these racist thugs feel less comfortable dominating that dark and lightly-travelled bleacher area. I have been walking my large dog through there more often lately. These thugs have stopped making their usual anti-white, anti-asian, and anti-hispanic comments to us when we walk by with our dogs. The city needs to turn on the ballfield lights at night, too, and they would scatter like the rats they are. I will continue to call 911 when I see them smoking pot and drinking, even if I have to do it daily/nightly.

There really is an uptick of violent crime by youthful offenders in West Seattle. As the area become more densely populated, courtesy of our urban planners and developers, there needs to be the supportive infrastructure in place to serve this exponentially growing population. Unfortunately that means more police presence and a resident police station.

CM, related note, I tried to get info from Harborview on how he is doing … but the fragment of a name that I had was apparently the first name, not the last name, and without at least a last name, info’s impossible to get.

CM,
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It isn’t that we do not have concerns about the victim. Rather, the outrage that the community feels toward the criminal activities near Roxhill Park may have desensitized us to the plight of the victim. But in the absence of the outrage from friends and family regarding an innocent victim, most are assuming that this is related to the violence earlier this week.

FYI, the Roxhill Park volunteers have done a lot of clearing lately, but they can’t be expected to do it all. There’s plenty more to be done, but Parks needs to step up as well. All that they ever do in there is mow the grass and rake the pathways – no clearing or other maintenance. The trash at the bus stop and in the park is becoming overwhelming. This park needs regular patrols. The mounted police, just a short distance away, would be PERFECT for this purpose.

One (or more) comments above really strike a chord with me. I am so bloody sick and tired of laws not being enforced – whether it’s public pot smoking, drinking, speeding, fireworks – what have you. Mark Jamieson of the SPD even had the gall to go on TV and publicly announce that these laws WILL NOT be enforced. What kind of message does that send? We’re police, but we refuse to enforce the LAW? WTF??! No wonder thugs think they own our community.
I don’t blame the cops on the beat, but Seattle has a serious leadership issue both in the police department and the City Attorney’s office.

The police are not going to inforce anything that might get them in any more hot water with the federal Department of Justice. As i see it, Seattle citizens have nobody but themselves to thank for crime starting to get completely out of control. There is no such thing as a perfect world, and I think that the unfortunate shooting of that Indian, by a rogue cop, has cast an unfair image on the rest of the SPD, who for the most part, are just trying to do a very difficult job. So now, because of the outcry about so called police brutality from citizens and politicians, we have been brought to this point. I don’t know what the answer is. The police are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. Even though I, personally, am legally licensed to carry, the last thing I ever would want to do is to have to use a firearm. Therefore, I make it a habit, to as much as possible, stay away from places that are frequented by thugs. Also, I’m getting to the point where I try to take care of all my business during day light hours. With the election for mayor coming up and a choice between Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb, I don’t see things getting better soon.

Mike, do I detect a bit of disapproval for using the term “that Indian”? Anyway, thanks, I couldn’t remember his name. Maybe I should have referred to him as that Native American to be PC. However, since I am proud to be part “Indian,” I’ve never considered the term “Indian” as being dis- respectful. Actually, “Native American” is a term dreamt up by some guilt racked white man who thought that he needed to be PC. To me, a native American is merely a person born in America, just like a native Washingtonian is a person born in Washington State. In my family, we always proudly use the term “Indian.”

Phild, I think Mike was reacting to the use of “that” in referring to the victim killed by police.
My commute takes so long (yes, I have gratefully connected with WS transpo group) that I can’t join a daytime weekday cleanup crew but will try on sunday afternoon.
I get off the bus at Barton terminal at dusk. Very creepy — the gauntlet. We do need to take positive action (although the immediate feeling is to avoid the problem) or it will grow quickly (it’s already escalating quickly — and I’ve been remarking on the number of shiny SUVs with very expensive rims going in and out of McDonald’s for the past year. Lucky5 gas station across from the library also has drug dealing. Have witnessed transactions behind the building — and the shoes are finally hanging on the wire indicating that dealers are ready to do business.)
Had a rental on our cul de sac that quickly turned into a drug house. A frail woman’s nephew moved in and then it was open season – a flophouse for dealers and addicts was born. Took two years to get rid of this raging nightmare eventually requiring the police to tell the owner to turn off power and water to force the multitude out of the house. This was a painful education about the sinister nature of drug dealing.

Phil, you’re right about the terminology. I’m part Ojibwe, my former partner was full blooded Spokane/Flathead. The families I’ve spent time with always use the terms “native” or “Indian”. However, to use the phrase “that Indian” when referring to someone who was murdered did seem a bit dismissive, if not disrespectful.

To the point: Rogue cops aside, the problem is not “liberal laws” but the lack of enforcement and/or prosecution.

Well, I can assure you that I didn’t mean to be dismissive or dis-respectful. Maybe I should have said THE Indian instead of THAT Indian. Or, maybe, THE INDIAN GENTLEMAN would have been more acceptable to those of you on the blog who would like to prescribe limits to the use of the English language. However, the term gentleman doesn’t quite fit, either, since I have it on good authority that one reason the deceased had so riled the police was that he had the habit of throwing feces at police with whom he had had numerous confrontations. I am not suggesting, though, that he should have been shot for that reason. I consider his death to have been an atrocious act by an over zealous and under trained cop.

(Sound Transit file photo, Capitol Hill) By Tracy Record West Seattle Blog editor The in-person open houses are over. The online open house continues. You have less than two weeks to get your opinion(s) into the wide-open